I'd fired anyone who was involved with Creed. I didn't want anything to do with the music business. The entire press and industry hated me, so what was the point?

When something like that happens, people want to try to find some dirt and make it more of a soap opera. But I think we both walked away with the door still open, if we want to do something together again. So yeah, I would call it a friendly break-up.

The story of my life is profoundly unclear. It is a rock-and-roll story and, at the same time, a story of my walk with Christ. The two are melded together in ways both unpredictable and unsure.

A lot of [my] songs have a sexuality to them, a vibe to them. ... I call it sexy rock and roll.

There comes a point with any collaboration like that where you start having other interests creatively. I was moving in one direction musically, and as a guitar player, Mark wanted to move in another direction. That was essentially the reason we broke up.

I had a psychotic break that was brought on by alcohol and drug abuse.

I hear a thunder in the distance; see a vision of the cross. I feel the pain that was given on a sad day of loss. Only He holds the key: a light to free me from my burden and grant me life eternally.